Water filtration and recycling for stone fabrication equipment for exterior and architectural stone

ABSTRACT

A filtered grey water recycling system includes a waste water storage tank for receiving waste water from a stone processing system and a filtered grey water supply loop providing filtered grey water to the stone processing system. The filtered grey water loop includes a separation filter for removing large particulate waste from the grey water and a particle filter for filtering smaller particulate matter. The separation filter discharges the large particulate waste into the waste water storage tank and a clear water filter loop filters waste water from the waste water storage tank through a high pressure filter and discharges the resulting clear water into the waste water storage tank.

CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present Patent application is a continuation-in-part of and claimsbenefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/650,187 filed Aug. 28,2003, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,896,818 by Ross E. Perry and Paula K. Perryfor WATER FILTRATION AND RECYCLING FOR STONE FABRICATION EQUIPMENT.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a method and system for watertreatment and, in particular, to a method and system for filteringparticulate matter from a waste water slurry to provide reusablefiltered grey water and, if desired, particulate free “crystal clear”water for processes having differing requirements and, in particular,for stone cutting and polishing processes and including the eliminationof any waste water discharge to an on siteseptic facility or a privatelyowned treatment works (POTW) or a city sewer.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Water is employed in a wide range of industrial processes and for a widerange of purposes, each of which imposes its own requirements orcharacteristics on the properties of the water entering and dischargedby the process. Such requirements on the properties or characteristicsof water used in or discharges from various processes in turn oftenresult in water treatment processes necessary to make the water suitableor acceptable for use in or discharge from the process, and the variouswater treatment processes in themselves may be a major technical oreconomic component of an industrial process.

Various industrial processes can impose a number of chemical andphysical requirements on incoming water, such as acidity, salinity,temperature and so on, and corresponding requirements on dischargewater, typically to meet environmental or health requirements. In manycommonly found industrial processes, however, the principle requirementsfor input and discharge water concern the particulate or suspendedcontents of the water rather than, for example, the chemical ordissolved contents of the water.

Examples of processes in which the physical or mechanical contents ofthe intake and discharge water are the primary concern are found in thestone fabrication industry, such as those involved in cutting, shapingand polishing natural and man-made stone for such products ascountertops, flooring, architectural paneling, and so on. As is wellknown by those of ordinary skill in these arts, water is commonly usedto wash away the particulate waste material from the cutting andpolishing processes, as a coolant to carry off heat produced by theprocesses, and often as a lubricant. As a consequence, stone cutting andpolishing processes, whether of natural stone or man-made stone-likematerials, generate heat and significant volumes of particulate wastematerial, both of which are carried away in and by the process dischargewater. The discharge water is consequently referred to as “grey” water,because of the particulate waste material in the water. The particulatewater material is primarily comprised of the material being cut orpolished, but will often include other particulate material, such asparticles from the cutting and polishing tools themselves and polishingor cutting compounds used with the tools and processes.

The type and degree of treatment performed on the grey discharge waterfrom the processes depends, in turn, on what is done with the dischargewater. For example, the grey water is eventually discharged from theprocesses and the treatment of the grey water before final discharge maybe dictated by environmental or health factors. In some instances, thegrey water may be treated in no more than a “settling tank” to allow atleast some of the particulate waste to “settle out” as sediment beforethe water is returned, for example, to a river or discharged to enterthe groundwater. In addition, water discharged into rivers, streams,groundwater and so on is required to meet state and federalrequirements, which typically require ongoing random testing of thedischarged water. In most instances, environmental or health concernsmay require removal of the particulate waste to the level of “crystalclear” water, as discussed below, before it is returned to theenvironment or original source.

In still other instances, at least some of the grey water may berecycled to the processes as intake water, thereby reducing to totalwater volume requirements of the processes. The treatment of recycledgrey water will depend, however, upon the uses to which the grey wateris to be put. For example, certain processes, and in particular stonecutting, drilling and cooling processes, may use grey water containing asignificant amount of particulate waste as the particulate waste from aprevious cycle through a stone cutting or polishing and Computer NumericControlled (CNC) process will not adversely effect a cutting, drilling,cooling or coarse grinding process. In such instances, the recycled greywater may require no more than a settling tank to allow sedimentation ofenough of the particulate waste material that the remaining wastematerial does not “clog” the ensuing process in which it is used, or mayrequire no treatment at all.

In other instances, however, the process or processes receiving recycledwater require “crystal clear” water, that is, water in which the volumeand size of particulate matter is strictly limited. Stone polishing andCNC processes, for example, must use intake water that is “crystalclear”, that is, water that generally contains no particulate matter,except particles that are generally less than 2 microns in diameter, aslarger particulate matter will interfere with the polishing or CNCprocess by making and leaving scratches that will prevent the desireddegree of polish or finish, that may leave visible scratches and thatmay clog the polishing tools and CNC spindle.

The recycling of grey water into “crystal clear” water, however, is atechnically and economically more complex and expensive process than asedimentation tank as used to recycle grey discharged water to greyintake water for such processes as cutting, drilling, cooling and coarsegrinding, and the choice is subject to many factors. For example, it maybe less expensive to provide fresh intake water for those processesrequiring “crystal clear” water, and to treat all discharge water asgrey water for both discharge and recycling purposes. In thealternative, however, and very often, the required quantities of freshintake water, or intake water of sufficient quality, may not beavailable or may be more costly than cleaning and recycling grey waterinto crystal clear water, or the volume of grey water that may bedischarged may be limited for any of a number of reasons.

The problem, therefore, is to provide an environmental water dischargesystem for industrial processes such as stone cutting, grinding,cooling, polishing and for CNC equipments that reduces the requiredvolume of fresh intake water and eliminates all grey discharge water byeconomic and efficient recycling of grey water into crystal clear waterin the required quantities.

The present invention addresses and provides a solution for these andother related problems of the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a water treatment and recyclingsystem and a method for water treatment and recycling for providingfiltered grey water or filtered gray water and clear water to a stoneprocessing system.

According to the present invention, the recycling system includes awaste water storage tank for receiving and storing waste water from thestone processing system and a filtered grey water supply loop thatincludes a grey water pump for pumping waste water from the waste waterstorage tank as grey water and a filtered grey water filter path havinga separation filter for removing large particulate waste from the greywater. The separation filter has a filtered grey water output providingfiltered grey water to the stone processing system and discharges thelarge particulate waste into the waste water storage tank. The systemalso includes a clear water filter loop that filters waste water fromthe waste water storage tank through a high pressure filter anddischarges the resulting clear water into the waste water storage tank,thereby for reducing particulate matter in the waste water storage tankby filtering particulate matter from the waste water. The grey waterfilter path may also include a particle filter for filtering smallerparticulate matter from the filtered grey water.

The stone processing system may also include a clear water supply loopwherein waste water from clear water equipment is discharged into thewaste water storage tank, with clear water being provided to the clearwater equipment from a clear water storage tank that receives clearwater from the high pressure filter.

Also according to the present invention, the high pressure filterincludes a frame holding a filter stack including a head plate, aplurality of filter plates, an tail plate and a ram for applying axialpressure along the filter stack to force the head plate, the filterplates and the tail plate into a pressure tight assembly with the tailplate being located at the opposite end of the filter stack from thehead plate and terminating the input passage and the discharge passages.The head plate and each of the filter plates include an axial input boreconnecting sequentially along the filter stage to form an axial inputpassage for receiving waste water from the waste water storage tank, anda plurality of discharge bores located circumferentially around theaxial input passage to form a corresponding plurality of dischargepassages extending along the length of the filter stack, the dischargepassages being connected to one another outside of the head plate and tothe crystal clear water storage tank. Each of the filter plates mayfurther include at least one filter chamber for containing andsupporting active filter elements wherein each filter chamber isconnected between the axial input passage and each of the plurality ofdischarge passages. The active filter elements remove particulate matterfrom the waste water flowing along the input passage to provide thecrystal clear water discharged through the discharge passages.

The active filter elements include a filter media extending across afilter chamber in a flow path between the input passage and thedischarge passages communicating with the filter chamber and a granularfilter layer coated upon and supported by the filter media for removalof particulate matter from the waste water, and the granular filterlayer is located in the flow path from the input passage to thedischarge passages on the input passage side of the filter media.

Each filter plate includes a filter chamber gasket circumferentiallysurrounding at least one filter chamber to seal the at least one filterchamber to a next sequential one of a filter plate, the head plate andthe tail plate, and a discharge bore gasket circumferentiallysurrounding each discharge bore on one face of the filter plate to sealeach discharge bore to a next sequential one of a filter plate, the headplate and the tail plate.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the presentinvention will be apparent from the following description of theinvention and embodiments thereof, as illustrated in the accompanyingfigures, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic representation of a water processing system ofthe present invention in association with a stone processing system;

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic representation of a high pressure filter of thepresent invention for filtering waste water into clear water;

FIG. 3A is a diagrammatic end view of a typical filter plate of the highpressure filter, which also illustrates an end plate and a head plate ofthe high pressure filter;

FIG. 3B is a cross section view of a filter stack of a high pressurefilter, including a head plate, filter plates and a tail plate;

FIG. 3C is a cross section of the active filter elements of a highpressure filter for a filter plate having back-to-back filter chambers;and

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic representation of an alternate embodiment of awater processing system of the present invention for filtering wastewater into recycled grey water for exterior or architectural stoneprocessing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 1, therein is shown a diagrammatic representation of aWater Treatment And Recycling System 10 of the present invention inassociation with a Stone Processing System 12 that includes StoneProcessing Tools 14, which will typically include Stone Processing Tools14A, such as bridge and gantry saws, routers, coarse grinders andcooling functions, that may utilize “grey water” and Stone ProcessingTools 14B, such as hand polishers, surface polishers, edge profilers,edge polishers, water jets and CNC Equipment that may require “CrystalClear Water”.

In this regard, and for purposes of the present discussions andinvention, “grey water” may be defined as water containing particulatematter that is typically greater than 2 microns in diameter, and that isoften significantly larger than 2 microns in diameter, while “crystalclear water” may be defined as water than typically includes onlyparticulate matter less than or equal to 2 microns in diameter.

As shown in FIG. 1, therefore, and according to the present invention, aWater Treatment And Recycling System 10 includes a Grey Water Loop 16Gand a Crystal Clear Water Loop 16C, each providing the quality of waterrequired for a given stone processing tool. For this purpose, and asindicated, the Grey Water Intakes 18 of Stone Processing Tools 14A,which can function with grey water, are connected from Grey Water SupplyLine 20 of Grey Water Loop 16G while the Crystal Clear Water Intakes 22of Stone Processing Tools 14B, which require crystal clear water, areconnected from Crystal Clear Water Supply Line 24 of Crystal Clear WaterLoop 16C.

As may be seen from FIG. 1, Grey Water Loop 16G and Crystal Clear WaterLoop 16C share a common waste water discharge path from Stone ProcessingTools 14A wherein Waste Water 26 from Waste Water Discharges 28 of StoneProcessing Tools 14A and 14B are collected by Waste Water CollectionLine 30, which in turn discharges Waste Water 26 into Waste WaterCollection Tank 32. Waste Water Collection Tank 32 may be, for example,a pit or a conventional tank, and is a holding reservoir for Waste Water30 that is to be recycled as grey or crystal clear water. Waste WaterCollection Tank 32 may also be a sedimentation facility for therecycling of Waste Water 26 into grey water and crystal clear water, ifnecessary.

First considering Grey Water Loop 16G, as shown Waste Water 26 is drawnfrom Waste Water Collection Tank 32 and is pumped onto Grey Water SupplyLine 20 as Grey Water 34 by Grey Water Pump 36. In a present embodimentof Water Treatment And Recycling System 10 Grey Water Pump 36 is, forexample, a self-priming, electrically powered centrifugal pumpdelivering Grey Water 34 at, for example, 40 psi and at the volumerequired by Stone Processing Tools 14A, which will depend upon thespecific Stone Processing System 12. As indicated, Grey Water 34 fromGrey Water Pump 36 is delivered through Grey Water Supply Line 20 toGrey Water Intakes 18 of Stone Processing Tools 14A, as described above.

As shown, Grey Water Pump 36 is controlled from a conventional ControlPanel 38 having the necessary and convention associated control circuitsfor controlling the operation of Grey Water Pump 36 and the delivery ofGrey Water 34 to Stone Processing Tools 14A. For example, the controlcircuits associated with Grey Water Pump 36 will include a conventionalWaste Water Float Sensor/Switch 40 to control the operation of GreyWater Pump 36 dependent upon the level of Waste Water 26 in Waste WaterCollection Tank 32.

In particular, Waste Water Float Sensor/Switch 40 prevents Grey WaterPump 36 from operating if the level of Waste Water 26 in Waste WaterCollection Tank 32 falls below a preset limit. This grey water cutofflimit is typically determined by the height of the Grey Water Pump 36intake in Waste Water Collection Tank 32 and is chosen to prevent damageto Grey Water Pump 36 if the level of Waste Water 26 should fall belowthe level of the Grey Water Pump 36 intake.

Also, when Grey Water Loop 16G is turned on, that is, Grey Water Pump 36is turned on and enabled by Waste Water Float Sensor/Switch 40, GreyWater Pump 36 will run continuously to maintain the desired pressure inGrey Water Supply Line 20. The continuous operation of Grey Water Pump36 also insures a continuous flow and recirculation of Grey Water 34through Waste Water Collection Tank 32 to thereby insure that WasteWater Tank 32 is free from collecting sediments. A manifold or valve mayalso be connected from the base of Waste Water Collection Tank 32 toallow Waste Water 26 and any sediments accumulated in the base of WasteWater Collection Tank 32 to be flushed from Waste Water Collection Tank32. The flow of Grey Water 34 is then controlled for each StoneProcessing Tool 14A individually by tool water supply control valvesassociated with the Grey Water Intakes 18 of the individual StoneProcessing Tools 14A. Keeping Waste Water Collection Tank 32 free ofaccumulated sediment thereby also protects Grey Water Pump 36 from “deadheading” in the event that control valves providing Grey Water 34 toStone Processing Tools 14A are closed.

Crystal Clear Water Loop 16C, like Grey Water Loop 16G, starts at WasteWater Collection Tank 32 where Waste Water 26 that is to be recycledinto Crystal Clear Water 42 is drawn from Waste Water Collection Tank 32by Air Diaphragm Pump 44 and is provided under pressure to High PressureFilter 46. High Pressure Filter 46, which is described further below,removes from the Waste Water 26 all particulate matter that is 2 micronsor greater in diameter, thereby recycling Waste Water 26 into CrystalClear Water 42, and delivers the Crystal Clear Water 42 into a CrystalClear Water Storage Tank 48.

In a present embodiment of a Water Treatment And Recycling System 10,Air Diaphragm Pump 44 is driven by air supplied, for example, at amaximum volume of up to 100 scfm and at a maximum pressure of up to 100psi. The compressed air must be clean, dry air and it will be recognizedthat the volume and pressure of the air is dependent upon the desiredvolume of crystal clear water and the resistance offered by HighPressure Filter 46. It will be understood by those of ordinary skill inthe relevant arts that the requirements for Air Diaphragm Pump 44 andthe air required to drive the pump will thereby be dependent upon thecrystal clear water volume requirements of Stone Processing System 12and that these requirements will vary depending, for example, on thecurrent state and efficiency of High Pressure Filter 46, such as thedegree to which the filters therein are clogged by filtered particulatematter. For example, and continuing with the example just described,High Pressure Filter 46 will present approximately 5 psi of backpressurewhen the filtering apparatus is clean and Air Diaphragm Pump 44 willconsume approximately 5 scfm of compressed air. When the filterapparatus in High Pressure Filter 46 is effectively full of particulatematter, High Pressure Filter 46 will present, for example, approximately80 psi of backpressure and Air Diaphragm Pump 44 will consumeapproximately 100 scfm of compressed air.

In a present embodiment, Air Diaphragm Pump 44 is controlled fromControl Panel 38 and is enabled or disenabled by, for example, WasteWater Float Sensor/Switches 40U and 40L in Waste Water Collection Tank32, which detects when the level of Waste Water 34 is adequate to supplyCrystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 through Air Diaphragm Pump 44 andwhen the level of Waste Water 34 in Waste Water Collection Tank 32 hasfallen too low, thereby protecting Air Diaphragm Pump 44. In theinstance that Waste Water Float Sensor/Switches 40U and 40L float inWaste Water Collection Tank 32, which may be the case when, for example,Waste Water Collection Tank 32 is a pit, Waste Water FloatSensor/Switches 40U and 40L will control only Grey Water Pump 36. Otherfloat sensors in Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48, as describedbelow, operate to maintain the necessary flow of water through HighPressure Filter 46 and the necessary levels in Crystal Clear WaterStorage Tank 48.

The Crystal Clear Water 42 contained in Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank48 is drawn from Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 and delivered toStone Processing Tools 14B through Crystal Clear Water Supply Line 24 bya Crystal Clear Water Supply Pump 50. As in the case of Grey Water Pump36 and Grey Water Supply Line 20, Crystal Clear Water Supply Pump 50runs continuously to maintain a desired pressure in Crystal Clear WaterSupply Line 24 so long as Crystal Clear Water Supply Pump 50 is turnedon from Control Panel 38 and is enabled by float sensors in CrystalClear Water Storage Tank 48. The flow of Crystal Clear Water 42 to theindividual Stone Processing Tools 14B is then controlled by individualcrystal clear water control valves located at the Crystal Clear WaterIntakes 22 of the individual Stone Processing Tools 14B.

As indicated in FIG. 1, Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 and thecontrol circuits for Crystal Clear Water Supply Pump 50 include a BottomFloat Sensor/Switch 52B, a Middle Float Sensor/Switch 52M and an UpperFloat Sensor/Switch 52U, each of which senses and indicates a level orlevel range of the Crystal Clear Water 42 in Crystal Clear Water StorageTank 48. For example, Bottom Float Sensor/Switch 52B is located towardsthe bottom of Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 and functions as asafety switch to protect Crystal Clear Water Supply Pump 50 by insuringthat Crystal Clear Water Supply Pump 50 is enabled only when the levelof Crystal Clear Water 42 in Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 is ator above the water intake of Crystal Clear Water Supply Pump 50. UpperFloat Sensor/Switch 52U, in turn, is located toward the top of CrystalClear Water Storage Tank 48 and operates to prevent overfilling ofCrystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48. Upper Float Sensor/Switch 52Uindicates when the Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 is full tomaximum safe capacity and turns off Air Diaphragm Pump 44 when thisstate is reached so that no more Crystal Clear Water 42 is supplied toCrystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 until the level of Crystal ClearWater 42 therein has decreased below the trip level of Upper FloatSensor/Switch 52U, typically by a flow of Crystal Clear Water 42 toStone Processing Tools 14B.

Finally, in a present embodiment of a Water Treatment And RecyclingSystem 10 the normal operating range of the level of Crystal Clear Water42 in Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 is between Upper FloatSensor/Switch 52U and Middle Float Sensor/Switch 52, that is, in themid-levels of Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 between Upper FloatSensor/Switch 52U and Bottom Float Sensor/Switch 52B. A Middle FloatSensor/Switch 52M is located in these levels to indicate when the levelof Crystal Clear Water 42 in Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 is inthe normal operating range, which in the present implementation isbetween Middle Float Sensor/Switch 52M and Upper Float Sensor/Switch52U. If the level of Crystal Clear Water 42 should fall below the levelof Middle Float Sensor/Switch 52M, Middle Float Sensor/Switch 52M willindicate this condition, thus indicating that the operating levels ofCrystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 are falling outside the normaloperating range and should be checked and the system adjusted. MiddleFloat Sensor/Switch 52M thereby provides a visual warning system of apossible undesirable operating trend, that is, that Crystal Clear Water42 is being used faster than it is being provided from High PressureFilter 46. Middle Float Sensor/Switch 52M does so by generating a visualand audible warning signal before the output of Crystal Clear Water 42to Crystal Clear Water Supply Line 24 is cut off when the level ofCrystal Clear Water 42 in Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48 drops tothe point where Bottom Float Sensor/Switch 52B is triggered.

Lastly with regard to Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48, it is shownin FIG. 1 that a present embodiment of Crystal Clear Water Loop 16Cincludes an alternative Sterilization Loop 54 connected from the CrystalClear Water Output 56 of Crystal Clear Water Supply Pump 50 and througha Sterilizer 58 and back into Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48. Inthe present embodiment of Water Treatment And Recycling System 10,Sterilizer 58 is an ultraviolet disinfection (UV) light that operates todestroy any bacteria that may grow in and contaminate the Crystal ClearWater 42 residing in Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48. BecauseCrystal Clear Water Supply Pump 50 operates continuously to maintain thedesired pressure in Crystal Clear Water Supply Line 24 so long as it isenabled by Float Sensor/Switch 52B, as described above, there will be acontinuous flow of Crystal Clear Water 42 from Crystal Clear WaterStorage Tank 48, through Sterilization Loop 54 and back into CrystalClear Water Storage Tank 48, thereby continuously disinfecting theCrystal Clear Water 42 therein. Sterilization Loop 54, by runningcontinuously, also provides an escape or relief path for Crystal ClearWater Supply Pump 50 should Crystal Clear Water Loop 16C become “deadheaded”, such as by the closing of all control valves supplying StoneProcessing Tools 14B.

Referring now to FIG. 2, therein is shown a diagrammatic representationof a High Pressure Filter 46. As illustrated therein, and in addition toAir Diaphragm Pump 44, High Pressure Filter 46 includes a Frame 58holding a Filter Stack 60 comprised of a steel Frame 58 with plumbingmounted to it, a Manifold Plate 64M, a Head Plate 64, a plurality ofFilter Plates 62, and a Tail Plate 62T mounted on Frame 58. A FilterStack 60 includes a Waste Water Input. Port 64G through which WasteWater 26 enters Filter Stack 60 and a plurality of Crystal Clear WaterDischarge Ports 64C through which Crystal Clear Water 42 is dischargedfrom Filter Stack 60. A Hydraulic Ram 66 mounted to the Frame 58controllably exerts axial pressure on a Push Plate 68, which in turnexerts axial force on Tail Plate 62T, the Filter Plates 62 and the HeadPlate 46 to force Head Plate 64, Filter Plates 62 and Tail Plate 62Tinto a water and pressure tight Filter Stack 60 against steel ManifoldPlate 64M, to which the Waste Water 26 and Crystal Clear Water 42connections are made.

As illustrated schematically in FIG. 2, and as described further below,Manifold Plate 64M, Head Plate 64 and Filter Plates 62 are constructedto form a central Input Passage 70 axially interconnecting a pluralityof Filter Chambers 72 and forming a Waste Water 26 flow path from WasteWater Input Port 64G into Filter Chambers 72. Manifold Plate 64M, HeadPlate 64 and Filter Plates 62 are also constructed to form a pluralityof axial Discharge Passages 74 that are circumferential to and connectedfrom Filter Chambers 72 to form a Crystal Clear Water 42 flow path fromFilter Chambers 72 to corresponding Crystal Clear Water Discharge Ports64C. Although not shown in detail, it should be noted that as indicatedin FIG. 2 Crystal Clear Water Discharge Ports 64C are connected togetherat the four corner points outside of Manifold Plate 64M to form a singleline to Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48, and Input Passage 70 andDischarge Passages 74 terminate at Tail Plate 62T.

Referring to FIGS. 3A, 3B and 3C, FIG. 3A is a diagrammatic end view ofa typical Filter Plate 62, which also illustrates a Head Plate 64 and aTail Plate 62T, while FIG. 3B is a cross section view of a Filter Stack60 including a Head Plate 64, Filter Plates 62 and a Tail Plate 62T.FIG. 3C, in turn, is a diagrammatic cross sectional view of ActiveFilter Elements 102, including a Filter Diaphragm 104 and a GranularFilter Aid Layer 106 for a Filter Plate 62 having back-to-back FilterChambers 72.

As illustrated in FIG. 3A, therein is shown one Face 76 of a typicalFilter Plate 62, which will also be used to illustrate a Head Plate 64and a Tail Plate 62T. As shown in FIG. 3A, a Filter Plate 62, a HeadPlate 64 and an Tail Plate 62T are each comprised of a Plate Body FilterRecess 80 and a Filter Plate 62 has a Filter Recess 80 formed in thecentral region of each Face 76 face of Plate Body 78. Head Plate 64 andTail Plate 62T, however, have a Filter Recess 80 in only the Face 76mating with an adjacent Filter Plate 62, that is, on the Face 76 facinginto the Filter Stack 60.

As will be described further below, each Filter Recess 80 forms a FilterChamber 72 supporting and containing Active Filter Elements 102, as willbe described in detail in the following. When a Filter Plate 62 is matedwith another Filter Plate 62, therefore, the facing Filter Recesses 80form back-to-back Filter Chambers 72 having a common input flow pathfrom Input Passage 70 and common output flow paths to Discharge Passages74. A Filter Plate 62 mated with a Head Plate 64 will have a singleFilter Chamber 72, as will Tail Plate 62T as in most embodiments onlythe Filter Plates 62 will include a double sided Filter Recess 80.

It is necessary to isolate Discharge Passages 74 and the Crystal ClearWater 42 therein from Input Passage 70 and the Waste Water 26 thereinand to thereby force Waste Water 26 to pass through the Active FilterElements 102 to become Crystal Clear Water 42.

For this reason, one Face 76 of each Filter Plate 62 will include aRecess Gasket 80G surrounding the Filter Recess 80 and Discharge BoreGaskets 84G surrounding the sections of Discharge Passages 74 extendingthrough the Filter Plate 62. Each Recess Gasket 80G and each DischargeBore Gasket 84G seats against a mating Face 76 of a neighbor FilterPlate 62 or of Tail Plate 62T when Filter Plates 62, Head Plate 64 andTail Plate 62T are forced together into a water and pressure tightFilter Stack 60.

Each Manifold Plate 64M and each Head Plate 64 will have a Recess Gasket80G surrounding the single Filter Recess 80 and Discharge Bore Gaskets84G surrounding the sections of Discharge Passages 74 extending throughthe Manifold Plate 64M or Head Plate 64 on the Faces 76 of these platesthat face into the Filter Stack 60, that is, in the direction of TailPlate 62T.

Each Face 76 of each Filter Plate 62, Head Plate 64 and Tail Plate 62Thaving a Filter Recess 80 will also have a Gasket Groove 110 surroundingthe Filter Recess 80 in that Face 76 for receiving and securing theActive Filter Elements 102 contained in each Filter Recess 80, as willbe discussed further below.

The section of Input Passage 70 formed in each Filter Plate 62, in HeadPlate 64, in Tail Plate 62T and in Manifold Plate 64B is formed by anInput Bore 82 located centrally in the Filter Recesses 80 of the platesand the Input Bore 82 of Manifold Plate 64M, Head Plate 64, each FilterPlate 62 and Tail Plate 62T is aligned with the Input Bores 82 of otherFilter Plates 62 and of Head Plate 64, Manifold Plate 64M and Tail Plate62T to form Input Passage 70. In this regard, it must be noted that theInput Bore 82 in Tail Plate 62T does not extend through the Tail Plate62T as the Input Passage 70 terminates at the Tail Plate 62T.

The sections of Discharge Passages 74 formed in Manifold Plate 64M, HeadPlate 64, each Filter Plate 62, and Tail Plate 62T a correspondingplurality of Discharge Bores 84 located circumferentially around theFilter Recess 80 or Filter Recesses 80, and thus concentrically aroundInput Passage 70. The Discharge Bores 84 in Manifold Plate 64M, HeadPlate 64, each Filter Plate 62 and Tail Plate 62T are each aligned withthe corresponding Discharge Bores 84 of Manifold Plate 64M, Head Plate64, other Filter Plates, 62, and Tail Plate 62T to form thecorresponding Discharge Passages 74. In the case of an Tail Plate 62T,however, the Discharge Bores 84 do not extend through the Plate Body 78as the Discharge Passages 74 terminate at the Tail Plate 62T.

As discussed in further detail below, the Active Filter Elements 102 ofa Filter Stack 60 extend across and are supported in each Filter Recess80 of each Filter Chamber 72 so that Waste Water 26 entering throughInput Passage 70 flows through the Active Filter Elements 102 to becomeCrystal Clear Water 42 in Discharge Passages 74. For this reason, eachFilter Recess 80, that is, each Filter Chamber 72, in Head Plate 64, ineach Filter Plate 62 and in Tail Plate 62T is connected to DischargeBores 84 through a plurality of Filter Discharge Grooves 86 formed in aRecess Face 88 of each Filter Recess 80 and Filter Discharge Passages 90connecting the Filter Discharge Passages 86 with Discharge Bores 84.Filter Discharge Passages 86 and Filter Discharge Passages 90 therebycomplete the flow path through which Waste Water 26 flows to and intoFilter Chambers 72 through Input Passage 70 and Crystal Clear Water 42flows from Filter Chambers 72 to and through Discharge Passages 74.

It must be noted with respect to Discharge Passages 74 and FilterDischarge Passage 86 that in a presently preferred embodiment of aFilter Stack 60 the sequence of Filter Plates 62 is formed of a sequenceof alternating Filter Plates 62A and 62B arranged in the sequence: 62A,62B, 62A, 62B . . . , and so on. In the presently preferred embodiment,Filter Plates 62A and Filter Plates 62B differ only in that in a FilterPlate 62A the Filter Discharge Passages 90 are connected to the upperand lower Discharge Passages 74 on one side of the Filter Plate 62 whilein a Filter Plate 62B the Filter Discharge Passages 90 are connected tothe upper and lower Discharge Passages 74 on the opposite side of theFilter Plate 62. As will be discussed further below, this arrangement ofalternating connections between the Filter Recesses 80 and DischargePassages 74 provides improved water flow characteristics and patternsthrough the Filter Stack 60 during normal filtering operation, duringdrying of the sludge that accumulates on Active Filter Elements 102, inback-flushing of the Filter Stack 60, and in coating Filter Media 104coated with a Granular Filter Aid Layer 106, as discussed in furtherdetail in a following discussion. It should be noted that in a platehaving two Filter Recesses 80, such as a Filter Plate 62, the FilterRecesses 80 may share common Filter Discharge Passages 90.

It will be recognized and understood by those of ordinary skill in thearts that Filter Discharge Grooves 86 and Filter Discharge Passages 90may be implemented in a number of alternate ways. For example, theFilter Discharge Grooves 86 of a Filter Chamber 72 may be replaced by apattern of openings formed in a port plate set into the Filter Recess 80and supporting the Active Filter Elements 102, thereby forming a spacebehind the port plate in which the water flowing through the ActiveFilter Elements 102 is collected before passing to Discharge Passages 84through Filter Discharge Passages 90.

In another embodiment, and for example, a Filter Plate 62, Tail Plate62T or Head Plate 64, or all three or any combination thereof, may be abox-like structure comprised of a frame generally forming the outsideperimeter of the Filter Plate 62, Tail Plate 62T ro Head Plate 64 andtwo face plates. In this embodiment, Filter Discharge Grooves 86 wouldinstead be formed by patterns holes in the face plates and the InputBores 82 and Discharge Bores 84 would be formed by tubular membersextending between the face plates, using blank face plates wherenecessary in the Head Plate 64 and Tail Plate 62T.

Next considering the Active Filter Elements 102 supported by andcontained in the Filter Chambers 72, FIG. 3C is a diagrammatic crosssectional view of a Filter Stack 60, including a sequence of FilterPlates 62 forming a mid-section portion of a Filter Stack 60, theinput/output end section of the Filter Stack 60 including a ManifoldPlate 64M, and the closed end section of the Filter Stack 60 includingan Tail Plate 62T.

As described herein above, Filter Plates 62 mate face-to-face with otherFilter Plates 62 or with a Head Plate 64 or an Tail Plate 62T so thattheir Input Bores 82 mate to form an Input Passage 70 and theirDischarge Bores 84 mate to form Discharge Passages 74 with each FilterRecess 80 forming a Filter Chamber 72. As illustrated in FIG. 3C, eachFilter Chamber 72 contains and supports Active Filter Elements 102 of aFilter Stack 60 wherein Active Filter Elements 102 rest upon Recess Face78 and over Filter Discharge Grooves 86. As described, Active FilterElements 102 are those elements of High Pressure Filter 46 that captureand filter out the particulate matter as necessary to convert WasteWater 26 into Crystal Clear Water 42 and, according to the presentinvention, Active Filter Elements 102 include a Filter Media 104 coatedwith a Granular Filter Aid Layer 106.

In the presently preferred embodiment, the Filter Media 104 for eachFilter Chamber 72 is attached to a Face 76 of Head Plate 64, FilterPlate 62 or Tail Plate 62T around the periphery of the Filter Recess 80by means of a Rope Gasket 108 stitched into the outer circumference ofthe Filter Media 104 and “force fit” seated into a Gasket Groove 110 inthe Face 76 and extending around the periphery of the Filter Recess 80.Filter Media 104 thereby extends across the Filter Recess 80 over FilterGrooves 86 and is attached and sealed to the Face 76 around the FilterRecess 80. As indicated in FIG. 3A, the outer perimeter of Filter Media104, and thus Rope Gasket 108 and Gasket Groove 110, are octagonal. Itwill be recognized, however, that the outer perimeter of Filter Media104 and thus Rope Gasket 108 and Gasket Groove 110 may be of any desiredshape, such as circular. It will also be recognized that Rope Gasket 108may be formed in a number of ways, such as by being woven into theperimeter of Filter Media 104 rather than as an initially separatecomponent stitched into or onto the Filter Mambrane 104. Rope Gasket 108may also be made of any material that has a mass adequate to secure theFilter Media 104 to the plate.

In the case of a Filter Plate 62 with two back-to-back Filter Chambers72, Filter Media 104 is comprised of two back-to-back Media Plates 112,each forming the section of Filter Media 104 extending across one of thetwo Filter Recesses 80. As shown, Each Media Plate 112 has a circularInput Bore Opening 114 corresponding to the Input Bore 82 of the FilterPlate 62, and the two Media Plates 112 are connected between the InputBore Openings 114 by a cylindrical Media Plate Connector 116, so thatthe Filter Discharge Grooves 86, Filter Discharge Passages 90 andDischarge Bores 84 of each Filter Chamber 72 are completely separatedfrom the Input Passage 70 by the Filter Media 104.

In the case of an Tail Plate 62T or of a Head Plate 64 containing aFilter Chamber 72, there is only one Filter Chamber 72 and the FilterMedia 104 is thereby comprised of a single Media Plate 112. In the caseof a Tail Plate 62T neither an Input Bore Opening 114 or Media PlateConnector 116 is required as the Input Passage 70 and Discharge Passages84 terminate at the Tail Plate 62T. In the case of a Head Plate 64, anInput Bore Opening 114 is required. As indicated in FIG. 3D, a hole iscut into the single Media Plate 112 and fitted over a Centering Nipple64N where a lock nut secures the Media Plate 112 to the Head Plate 64.

In the presently preferred embodiment of the present invention, FilterMedias 104 are preferably comprised of a woven fabric material having anOxford weave of multifilament yarn made of polypropylene fibers andhaving a specific weight of approximately 14 oz. per square yard, athread count of approximately 75×2 per square inch, and a sfm rating ofapproximately 2–3. The presently preferred filter cloth is manufactured,or stitched, by C. Goodman & Co., Inc. of Paterson, N.J. as style number42614, and is presently formed into Filter Medias 104 by C. Goodman &Co., Inc. The Filter Medias 104 may typically have diameters in therange of 1 to 6 feet, with the diameters of Filter Medias 104 and thenumber of Filter Plates 62 in the Filter Stack 60 being dependent on thedesired flow volume of Crystal Clear Water 42.

Next referring to Granular Filter Aid Layers 106, the upstream side ofeach Filter Media 104, that is, the side of each Filter Media 104towards Input Passage 70, is coated with a Granular Filter Aid Layer 106comprised of a granular filter material capable of capturing theparticulate waste matter present in Waste Water 26. Each Granular FilterAid Layer 106 thereby performs two functions, one being to aid in thefiltration of particulate matter from Waste Water 26, that is, tocapture particulate waste matter to prevent the particulate waste matterfrom reaching the Filter Media 104 itself. The second function is toprevent the particulate waste matter from penetrating the surface of theFilter Media 104 and causing premature “fouling” of the Filter Media 104that is either captured by the Granular Filter Aid Layer 106 itself orthat is stopped from passing through the Filter Mambrane 104 by theFilter Media 104 itself. In this regard, it will be recognized that aprimary function of each Filter Media 104 is to support the material ofthe Granular Filter Aid Layer 106 that coats the Filter Media 104.

Each Granular Filter Aid Layer 106 is comprised of a layer of granular,porous material comprised of amorphous alumina silicate of the formcommonly referred to by the trade name “Perlite”, which is obtained fromthe heat treatment expansion of extracts from perlite ore, and having athickness of approximately 0.1 lbs of Perlite per square foot of FilterMedia 104 area. In the present embodiment of Granular Filter Aid Layers106, the material comprising Granular Filter Aid Layers 106 is comprisedof “Perlite” product number H 700 available from Harborlite Corp., whichis located in Lompoc, Calif., and which is a perlite products divisionof World Minerals Inc., which is located in Santa Barbara, Calif.

The material employed in Granular Filter Aid Layers 106 in the presentlypreferred embodiment of the present invention, that is, “Perlite”product number H 700 from Harborlite Corp., is referred to as Food CodexGrade whole filter aid powder and is comprised of the form of amorphousalimina silicate known by the tradename “Perlite”. The material has adensity of 11.0 pounds per cubic foot in the packaged form and a densityof 13.2 pounds per cubic foot in the cake form, a median particle sizeof 35.6 microns, a median pore size of 18.1 microns, a specific gravityof 2.3 and a DARCY permeability of 1.24 and a 140 mesh screen retainfactor of 8%.

In summary, therefore, Waste Water 26 enters a Filter Stack 60 throughInput Passage 70, which is comprised of the Input Bore 82 segments inHead Plate 64 and in each Filter Plate 62 and which connects FilterChambers 72 such that Waste Water 26 can readily flow through InputPassage 70 from Input Bore 82 of Head Plate 64 into each Filter Chamber72 along the Input Passage 70 and to the termination of Input Passage 70at Tail Plate 62T. In each Filter Chamber 72, the Waste Water 26 flowsthrough the Granular Filter Aid Layer 106 and the Filter Media 104 ofActive Filter Elements 102, and, as Crystal Clear Water 42, flowsthrough Filter Discharge Grooves 86 and Filter Discharge Passages 90 andinto Discharge Bores 84. As described, each Discharge Bore 84 is asegment of a Discharge Passage 74 and Crystal Clear Water 42 therebyflows through Discharge Passages 74 to and through Head Plate 64, wherethe flow of Crystal Clear Water 42 from the Discharge Passages 74 arecombined into a single flow to Crystal Clear Water Storage Tank 48.

The filtering of Waste Water 26 into Crystal Clear Water 42 will resultin the accumulation of particulate waste matter filtered from the WasteWater 26 in each of the Granular Filter Aid Layers 106 and a deposit ofsome particulate waste material on each Filter Media 104. The buildup of“sludge” in each Granular Filter Aid Layer Granular Filter Aid Layers106 and on each Filter Media 104 will result in a gradually increasingbackpressure in the Filter Stack 60 until the flow of Waste Water 26into Filter Stack 60 and the flow rate of Crystal Clear Water 42 fromFilter Stack 60 is reduced to a level below that which is desired. Atthis point it is necessary to clean the “sludge” from Filter Stack 60.

A Filter Stack 60 is cleaned by first forcing air into the Filter Stack60 through one of the upper Discharge Passages 74 in the reversedirection of the normal flow, whereupon the air will flow into passagesand chambers of the Filter Plates 62, Head Plaate 64 and Tail Plate 62Tand will force water from the sludge deposit in Granular Filter Layers106 and the Filter Media 104 and out the lower Discharge Passage 74connected to the Filter Chamber 72, which is left open for this purpose.The forcing of water out of the sludge deposit in Granular Filter Layers106 and Filter Medias 104 will transform the sludge from a watery mudinto a dryer and more solid deposit that is more manageable than theoriginal watery sludge, which would typically drop off the Filter Medias104 as soon as the Filter Stack 60 is opened. The air is forced into oneor both upper Discharge Passages 74 through an air connection fittingconnecting to a selected Discharge Passage 74. In a presently preferredembodiment, however, the air fitting is connected into Manifold Plate64M and through Manifold Plate 64M to one or more Discharge Passages 74through an air fitting mounted on Manifold Plate 64M separate fromDischarge Passages 74,

The pressure exerted by Hydraulic Ram 66 on Push Plate 68 and thereby onTail Plate 62T, Filter Plates 62, End Plate 64 and Manifold Plate 64M isthen released so that Filter Plates 62 and Tail Plate 62T can beseparated and removed by means of the Plate Handles 78H located on eachside of each Plate Body 78. The Granular Filter Aid Layer 106, thegranular material of which contains and is now a part of the sludge oneach Filter Media 104, is then scraped off of each Filter Media 104 andthe Filter Medias 104 are washed with a high pressure hose spray toremove the last of the sludge layer and any particulate waste mattercaught in the fabric of the Filter Medias 104. This process is normallyperformed on Head Plate 64 “in place” as Head Plate 64 is typicallypermanently mounted onto Frame 58 adjacent to Manifold Plate 64M.

The Filter Plates 62 and Tail Plate 62T are then reassembled into theFilter Stack 60 and the pressure exerted by Hydraulic Ram 66 is restoredto force the Tail Plate 62T and the Filter Plates 62 into contact witheach other and with Head Plate 64 and Manifold Plate 64M to form the airand pressure tight Filter Stack 60. Crystal Clear Water 42 is thenpumped from a Cleaning System Storage Tank 118 and through the FilterStack 60 in the normal direction of flow from Input Passage 70 toDischarge Passages 74 until all residual particulate matter is washedfrom the Discharge Passages 74.

It will be apparent that, at this stage, and while the Filter Stack 60is cleaned, reassembled and flushed, there are no Granular Filter Layers106 coating the Filter Medias 104, and that the Granular Filter Layers106 must be pre-coated onto the Filter Medias 104 before use of theFilter Stack 60.

The pre-coating of Granular Filter Layers 106 onto the Filter Medias 104is accomplished by connecting the Cleaning System Storage Tank 118 ofcrystal clear water to Input Passage 70 through Air Pump 44, with theDischarge Passages 74 being returned back to Cleaning System StorageTank 118. The volume of crystal clear water in Cleaning System StorageTank 118 is dependent upon the capacity of the Filter Stack 60 andshould be sufficient to fill the Filter Stack 60, to fill the pipingbetween the Cleaning System Storage Tank 118 and Filter Stack 60,including the capacity of Air Pump 44, and an additional margin inCleaning System Storage Tank 118. It should also be noted that CleaningSystem Storage Tank 118 may be, for example, a barrel, tank or “pit”.

The crystal clear water in Cleaning System Storage Tank 118 is then“charged” with a quantity of the material comprising the Granular FilterLayers 106, which will be used to pre-coat the Filter Media 104, withthe volume of pre-coat material being dependent on the square footage ofFilter Media 104 contained in Filter Stack 60. The mixture of crystalclear water and pre-coat material is then pumped into Input Passage 70and crystal clear water will flow out of Discharge Passages 74 and backto Cleaning System Storage Tank 118 while the pre-coat material isfiltered out of the water by each Filter Media 104, thereby forming theGranular Filter Aid Layer 106 on each Filter Media 104. This process maybe repeated as necessary with successive charges of the pre-coatmaterial being added to the water until the necessary thickness ofGranular Filter Aid Layer 106 is deposited on each Filter Media 104,which as described is on the order of 0.1 lb of pre-coat material pereach square foot of area of the Filter Media 104 in the Filter Stack 60.Water continues to “recirculate” through the Cleaning System StorageTank 118 until all pre-coat material has been removed by being depositedon Filter Media 104, and the Filter Stack 60 will then be ready for use.

As described herein above, a typical implementation of a presentlypreferred embodiment of a High Pressure Filter will include one TailPlate 62T, one Head Plate Plate 64 mounted rigidly to Frame 58, whereinFrame 58 includes Manifold Plate 64M mounted on Frame 58, several FilterPlates 62 which are mounted into Frame 58, and the Hydraulic Ram 66,which is attached between Frame 58 and Push Plate 68. Filter Plates 62and Filter Medias 104 may be between 1 and 6 feet across andapproximately 2 to 4 inches thick, while the single Input Passage 70 andDischarge Passages 74, of which there are typically 4, may range from 1to 3 inches in diameter.

Next considering alternate embodiments and implementations of a WaterTreatment And Recycling System 10 of the present invention, the stonefabrication industry may be regarded as comprised of two distinct andoften separate but related fields, one which may be referred to as“interiors” or “detail” or “countertop” stone processing and the otherof which may be referred to as “exterior” or “architectural” or “volume”stone processing. “Interiors” stone processing, which is addressed aboveis typically comprised of the fabrication, for example, of countertopsfor residential or commercial use, and is typically characterized alower volume of stone processing but to a high degree of finish on thestone.

As described above with respect to a Water Treatment And RecyclingSystem 10, “interior” stone processing typically requires both arelatively high volume of relatively low quality water for stone cuttingand rough finishing processes and a supply of very high quality recycledwater, typically with allowable particle sizes or 2 microns or lessafter filtration, for high quality stone processing operations, such asfinal polishing. A Water Treatment And Recycling System 10 as describedherein above is intended to meet these requirements for “interior” stoneprocessing operations.

“Exterior” or “architectural” stone processing, however, is typicallycharacterized by a lower standard of finish on the stone butsignificantly higher volumes of stone being processed. “Architectural”stone processing may therefore require significantly higher volumes ofwater than “interior” stone processes, but typically does not require ashigh a quality of water as does “interior” stone processing because thedesired or required standard of final finish is lower than is requiredin “interior” stone processing. For example, filtration to particlesizes of 75 microns and below is typically acceptable, although certainprocesses may require polishing to the “crystal clear” level, asdescribed above, as well.

Stated another way, the “grey” water produced by the above describedWater Treatment And Recycling System 10 is typically of acceptablequality for the rough cutting and rough shaping and finishing processesof “exterior” or “architectural” stone processing. The finer shaping andfinish steps in “exterior” or “architectural” stone processing, however,require water of a quality that, while not as high as the clear waterstandard for “interior” stone processing, is higher than the grey waterstandard for interior stone processing and will be referred tohereinafter as “filtered grey water”. It will also be understood that,as described herein above, certain processes must meet the “crystalclear” standard, as well. The “filtered grey water” requirements,however, may be met by an appropriate adaptation of a Water TreatmentAnd Recycling System 10.

Referring now to FIG. 4, therein is illustrated a Water Treatment AndRecycling System 10G of the present invention wherein a Water TreatmentAnd Recycling System 10 of the present invention is adapted for thespecific requirements of filtering waste water from Stone ProcessingTools 14 into recycled grey water for high volume exterior andarchitectural stone processing. As will be described in further detailin the following, a Water Treatment And Recycling System 10G is requiredto provide an adequate flow of Filtered Grey Water 34F to StoneProcessing Tools 14A, wherein Filtered Grey Water 34F may be defined aswater containing particulate matter of no greater than 75 microns, andto maintain an adequate reserve supply of Grey Water 34, includingremoving excess or oversized particulate matter.

It must also be noted that it may be necessary or desirable for a WaterTreatment And Recycling System 10G to be capable of providing adequateflows of Clear Water 42 for “interior” stone processing, as describedherein above with respect to a Water Treatment And Recycling System 10.In this instance, the system will be capable of operating as a waterfiltration system for either or both an “exterior” or “architecture”stone processing system and an “interior” stone processing system,either alternately or concurrently.

As may be seen in FIG. 4, the resulting Water Treatment And RecyclingSystem 10G will include an Filtered Grey Water Loop 16GA that, ineffect, parallels the Grey Water Supply Line 20 of a Water Treatment AndRecycling System 10 as illustrated in FIG. 1 and that thereby sharespart of Grey Water Loop 16G but includes a Filtered Grey Water Path 20F.As shown, Filtered Grey Water Path 20F is connected between the outputof Grey Water Supply Pump 36 and Grey Water Intakes 18 of StoneProcessing Tools 14A and typically includes a Separation Filter 120S. Ina filtered grey water system of the present invention, Separation Filter120S employs mechanical separation technology, such as a centrifugalstyle separator available from, for example, Lakos Systems and removeslarger particles, that is, particles down to the 75 micron size, fromWaste Water 26 drawn from Waste Water Collection Tank 32. As shown,Separation Filter 120S has a Large Particle Output 120L dischargingwater containing the separated larger particles to Waste WaterCollection Tank 32 to be removed from the Waste Water 26 therein byother filtration processes, described below.

The grey water output of Separation Filter 120S may be passed though aParticle Filter 120F for removal of remaining particles to whatever sizeis deemed necessary for Stone Processing Tools 14A, wherein SeparationFilter 120S may be, for example, a filter available from RosedaleProducts. It should be noted, however, that the filtration processes ofFiltered Grey Water Path 20F may be implemented through other filterprocesses, such as through the recycling loop through High PressureFilter 46 as described below. In these embodiments, the system wouldinclude a Recycling Path 122R from the outlet of Gray Water Supply Pump36 and back to Waste Water Collection Tank 32, thereby providing asignificant flow of Waste Water 26 from and back into Waste WaterCollection Tank 32. This flow will thereby keep the solid wasteparticles in Waste Water 26 in Waste Water Collection Tank 32 insuspension for removal through the alternate filter path, such as thefilter path through High Pressure Filter 46 as described below.

As indicated generally in FIG. 4, Filtered Grey Water Path 20F may beconnected into the system in place of Grey Water Supply Line 20, therebycomprising the only grey water flow path from Grey Water Supply Pump 36to Stone Processing Tools 14A. This would be the typical configurationused, for example, in a Water Treatment System 10G that was intended foronly “exterior” or “architectural” stone processing. Filtered Grey WaterPath 20F may be connected in parallel with Grey Water Supply Line 20 bymeans of, for example, Valves 122A and 122B, whereupon the waterfiltration system may selectively operate as either or both of WaterTreatment System 10G and a Water Treatment System 10. In otherembodiments, however, such as when the systems is required to alsoprovide “crystal clear” water, the Clear Water Supply Loop 16C wouldalso be provided, as described herein above. It should also be notedthat the filtration.

As described above, it is necessary or at least preferable that theWater Treatment System 10G remove at least the larger particulate wastein the Waste Water 26 in Waste Water Collection Tank 32 to provide asuitable and adequate reserve of Grey Water 34 for Filtered Grey WaterPath 20F and Stone Processing Tools 14A. It will be apparent thatSeparation Filter 120S alone is inadequate for this task as it returnsthe larger particulate waste to Waste Water Collection Tank 32, so thatthe Waste Water 26 in Waste Water Collection Tank 32 would simplyaccumulate larger and larger quantities of particulate waste.

In a presently preferred embodiment of a Water Treatment System 10G,therefore, the filtration path through High Pressure Filter 46, which isdescribed in detail herein above, is employed to recycle Waste Water 26from Waste Water Collection Tank 32 through a Clear Water Return Path124 that includes the path from Waste Water Collection Tank 32, throughHigh Pressure Filter 46 and back to Waste Water Collection Tank 32. Thispath thereby continuously recycles and filters the Waste Water 26 inWaste Water Collection Tank 32 to reduce or at least maintain the levelof particulate matter therein. As shown in FIG. 4, in this applicationthe return path from High Pressure Filter 46 does not return to ClearWater Storage Tank 42, but instead bypasses Clear Water Storage Tank 42and returns directly to Waste Water Collection Tank 32. As in the caseof Filtered Grey Water Path 20F, a Valve 122C may be employed at thebranching of the clear water output path from High Pressure Filter 46,thereby allowing the clear water from High Pressure Filter 46 to bedirected to either Clear Water Storage Tank 42 or Waste Water CollectionTank 32, depending upon system demands and whether the system is beingoperated as either or both of Water Treatment System 10G and a WaterTreatment System 10.

Lastly, a Water Treatment System 10G may further include a Clear WaterOverflow path 126 running from an overflow level of Clear Water StorageTank 42 and to Waste Water Collection Tank 32 and controlled through aValve 122D, thereby avoiding the overflow waste of clean water andallowing continuous operation of the system during the startup phases ofoperation.

Finally, it should be noted that a Filtered Grey Water Path 20F witheither or both of a Separation Filter 120S and a Particle Filter 120Fmay be employed in a Water Treatment System 10 in place of the GreyWater Supply Line 20 to provide a higher level of filtration for thewater provided to Stone Processing Tools 14A, if so desired.

Since certain changes may be made in the above described method andsystem without departing from the spirit and scope of the inventionherein involved, it is intended that all of the subject matter of theabove description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall beinterpreted merely as examples illustrating the inventive concept hereinand shall not be construed as limiting the invention.

1. A water treatment and recycling system for providing at least one offiltered grey water and filtered grey water and clear water to a stoneprocessing system respectively including at least one of grey waterstone fabrication equipment and filtered grey water and clear waterstone fabrication equipments, comprising: a waste water storage tankconnected from the waste water discharge ports of the grey waterequipment for receiving and storing the waste water, a filtered greywater supply loop, including a grey water pump connected from the wastewater storage tank for pumping waste water from the waste water storagetank as grey water, and a filtered grey water filter path connected froma grey water output of the grey water pump and having a separationfilter for removing large particulate waste from the grey water, theseparation filter having a filtered grey water output connected to aninput port of a filtered grey water tool and discharging the largeparticulate waste into the waste water storage tank, and a clear waterfilter loop, including an air pump for pumping waste water from thewaste water storage tank, and a high pressure filter for reducingparticulate matter in the waste water storage tank by filteringparticulate matter from the waste water to convert the waste water intothe clear water, the high pressure filter being connected from the airpump and having a clear water output discharging into the waste waterstorage tank.
 2. The water treatment and recycling system of claim 1,wherein the grey water filter path further comprises: a particle filterfor filtering smaller particulate matter from the filtered grey water.3. The water treatment and recycling system of claim 1, wherein: a wastewater discharge port of the clear water equipment is connected todischarge the waste water from the clear water equipment into the wastewater storage tank, and further including a clear water storage tankselectably connected from the high pressure filter for receiving andstoring the clear water from the high pressure filter, and a clear watersupply path including a clear water pump connected from the clear waterstorage tank for pumping clear water from the clear water storage tankand to an input port of a clear water tool.
 4. The water treatment andrecycling system of claim 1 wherein the high pressure filter comprises:a frame holding a filter stack including a head plate, a plurality offilter plates, a tail plate and a ram for applying axial pressure alongthe filter stack to force the head plate, the filter plates and the tailplate into a pressure tight assembly, the head plate and each of thefilter plates including an axial input bore connecting sequentiallyalong the filter stage to form an axial input passage for receivingwaste water from the waste water storage tank, and a plurality ofdischarge bores located circumferentially around the axial input passageto form a corresponding plurality of discharge passages extending alongthe length of the filter stack, the discharge passages being connectedto one another outside of the head plate and to the crystal clear waterstorage tank, and each of the filter plates further including at leastone filter chamber for containing and supporting active filter elements,each filter chamber being connected between the axial input passage andeach of the plurality of discharge passages and the active filterelements removing particulate matter from the waste water flowing alongthe input passage to provide the crystal clear water discharged throughthe discharge passages, and the tail plate being located at the oppositeend of the filter stack from the head plate and terminating the inputpassage and the discharge passages.
 5. The water treatment and recyclingsystem of claim 4, wherein the active filter elements comprise: a filtermedia extending across a filter chamber in a flow path between the inputpassage and the discharge passages communicating with the filterchamber, and a granular filter layer coated upon and supported by thefilter Media for removal of particulate matter from the waste water, thegranular filter layer being located in the flow path from the inputpassage to the discharge passages on the input passage side of thefilter media.
 6. The water treatment and recycling system of claim 4,further comprising: in each filter plate, a filter chamber gasketcircumferentially surrounding at least one filter chamber to seal the atleast one filter chamber to a next sequential one of a filter plate, thehead plate and the tail plate, and a discharge bore gasketcircumferentially surrounding each discharge bore on one face of thefilter plate to seal each discharge bore to a next sequential one of afilter plate, the head plate and the tail plate.
 7. A method forproviding at least one of filtered grey water and filtered grey waterand clear water to a stone processing system respectively including atleast one of grey water stone fabrication equipment and grey water andclear water stone fabrication equipments, comprising the steps of:receiving waste water from the waste water discharge ports of the greywater equipment and storing the waste water in a waste water storagetank, pumping waste water from the waste water storage tank as greywater, removing large particulate waste from the grey water to convertthe grey water into filtered grey water by filtering the grey water in aseparation filter, and discharging the large particulate waste into thewaste water storage tank, and providing the filtered grey water to aninput port of a grey water tool, filtering particulate matter from thewaste water in the waste water storage tank by filtering the waste waterthrough a high pressure filter to convert the waste water to clearwater, and discharging the clear water into the waste water storagetank.
 8. The method for providing at least one of filtered grey waterand filtered grey water and clear water to a stone processing system ofclaim 7, further comprising the step of: filtering particulate matterfrom the filtered grey water from the separation filter to removesmaller particulate matter by filtering the filtered grey water througha particle filter.
 9. The method for providing at least one of filteredgrey water and filtered grey water and clear water to a stone processingsystem of claim 7, further comprising the steps of: receiving andstoring at least a portion of the clear water from the high pressurefilter in a clear water storage tank, and pumping clear water from theclear water storage tank and through a clear water path to a clear watertool, and discharging the waste water from the clear water equipmentinto the waste water storage tank.
 10. The water treatment and recyclingsystem of claim 7 wherein the high pressure filter comprises: a frameholding a filter stack including a head plate, a plurality of filterplates, an tail plate and a ram for applying axial pressure along thefilter stack to force the head plate, the filter plates and the tailplate into a pressure tight assembly, the head plate and each of thefilter plates including an axial input bore connecting sequentiallyalong the filter stage to form an axial input passage for receivingwaste water from the waste water storage tank, and a plurality ofdischarge bores located circumferentially around the axial input passageto form a corresponding plurality of discharge passages extending alongthe length of the filter stack, the discharge passages being connectedto one another outside of the head plate and to the crystal clear waterstorage tank, and each of the filter plates further including at leastone filter chamber for containing and supporting active filter elements,each filter chamber being connected between the axial input passage andeach of the plurality of discharge passages and the active filterelements removing particulate matter from the waste water flowing alongthe input passage to provide the crystal clear water discharged throughthe discharge passages, and the tail plate being located at the oppositeend of the filter stack from the head plate and terminating the inputpassage and the discharge passages.
 11. The water treatment andrecycling system of claim 10, wherein the active filter elementscomprise: a filter media extending across a filter chamber in a flowpath between the input passage and the discharge passages communicatingwith the filter chamber, and a granular filter layer coated upon andsupported by the filter Media for removal of particulate matter from thewaste water, the granular filter layer being located in the flow pathfrom the input passage to the discharge passages on the input passageside of the filter media.
 12. The water treatment and recycling systemof claim 10, wherein each filter plate includes: a filter chamber gasketcircumferentially surrounding at least one filter chamber to seal the atleast one filter chamber to a next sequential one of a filter plate, thehead plate and the tail plate, and a discharge bore gasketcircumferentially surrounding each discharge bore on one face of thefilter plate to seal each discharge bore to a next sequential one of afilter plate, the head plate and the tail plate.
 13. A method forrecycling waste water from a stone processing system by removingparticulate matter from the waste water, comprising the steps of:receiving and storing waste water from the stone processing system in awaste water storage tank, pumping waste water from the waste waterstorage tank as grey water, removing large particulate waste from thegrey water to convert the grey water into filtered grey water byfiltering the grey water in a separation filter, and discharging thelarge particulate waste into the waste water storage tank, and providingthe filtered grey water to the stone processing system, while filteringparticulate matter from the waste water in the waste water storage tankby filtering the waste water from the waste water storage tank to clearwater by filtering the waste water in the high pressure filter, anddischarging the clear water into the waste water storage tank, whereinthe high pressure filter includes a filter stack including a head plate,a plurality of filter plates and a tail plate, wherein the head plateand each of the filter plates include an axial input bore connectingsequentially along the filter stage to form an axial input passage forreceiving waste water from the waste water storage tank, and a pluralityof discharge bores located circumferentially around the axial inputpassage to form a corresponding plurality of discharge passagesextending along the length of the filter stack, the discharge passagesbeing connected to one another outside of the head plate and to thecrystal clear water storage tank, and the tail plate is located at theopposite end of the filter stack from the head plate and terminating theinput passage and the discharge passages.
 14. The method of claim 13,wherein the filter plates comprise: a filter media extending across afilter chamber in a flow path between the input passage and thedischarge passages communicating with the filter chamber, and a granularfilter layer coated upon and supported by the filter Media for removalof particulate matter from the waste water, the granular filter layerbeing located in the flow path from the input passage to the dischargepassages on the input passage side of the filter media.
 15. The methodof claim 13, wherein: each filter plate includes, a filter chambergasket circumferentially surrounding at least one filter chamber to sealthe at least one filter chamber to a next sequential one of a filterplate, the head plate and the tail plate, and a discharge bore gasketcircumferentially surrounding each discharge bore on one face of thefilter plate to seal each discharge bore to a next sequential one of afilter plate, the head plate and the tail plate.
 16. The method of claim13, further including a method for cleaning the filter stack ofaccumulated waste particulate matter, comprising the steps of: forcingair into the filter stack through a discharge passage to force air toflow through the filter chambers and the active filter elements to andthrough the input passage to force water from particulate waste mattercaptured by the active filter elements, releasing axial pressure on thefilter stack to permit separation of the head plate, the filter platesand the tail plate, scraping the particulate waste matter captured bythe active filter elements and a granular filter layer containing thecaptured particulate waste matter from the surface of a filter media,flushing captured particulate waste matter from the surface of thefilter Media by means of a high pressure water system, reassembling thehead plate, the filter plates and the tail plate into a filter stack andrestoring the axial pressure on the head plate, the filter plates andthe tail plate to force the filter stack into a pressure tight assembly,flushing crystal clear water through the filter stack in the normaldirection of flow to fill the high pressure filter and to flush residualwaste matter from the filter stack by forcing crystal clear water intothe input passage to flow through the filter plates and out thedischarge passage, and restoring the granular filter layer coating toeach filter media.
 17. The method of claim 16 further including a methodfor coating a granular filter layer onto each filter media, comprisingthe steps of: pumping a mixture of crystal clear water and a granularmaterial comprising the granular filter layer into the input passage ofthe filter stack to flow through each filter Media of each filter plateand through the discharge passages from the filter stack, andrecirculating the crystal clear water returned from the dischargepassages of the filter stack and replenishing the granular materialmixed into the crystal clear water until a desired thickness of thegranular material is deposited on the each filter Media of each filterplate.
 18. The method of claim 13 wherein each filter plate includes afilter media coated with a granular filer layer for filtering theparticulate waste matter from the waste water to convert the waste waterinto crystal clear water, further comprising a method for depositing agranular filter layer on each filter media, comprising the steps of:pumping a mixture of crystal clear water and a granular materialcomprising the granular filter layer into the input passage of thefilter stack to flow through each filter media of each filter plate andthrough the discharge passages from the filter stack, and recirculatingthe crystal clear water returned from the discharge passages of thefilter stack and replenishing the granular material mixed into thecrystal clear water until a desired thickness of the granular materialis deposited on the each filter Media of each filter plate.
 19. A watertreatment and recycling system for providing at least one of filteredgrey water and filtered grey water and clear water to a stone processingsystem respectively including at least one of grey water stonefabrication equipment and filtered grey water and clear water stonefabrication equipments, comprising: a waste water storage tank connectedfrom the waste water discharge ports of the grey water equipment forreceiving and storing the waste water, a filtered grey water supplyloop, including a grey water pump connected from the waste water storagetank for pumping waste water from the waste water storage tank as greywater, and a filtered grey water filter path connected from a grey wateroutput of the grey water pump and to an input port of a filtered greywater tool and having a grey water recycling discharge path into thewaste water storage tank to maintain particulate matter in suspension inthe waste water in the waste water collection tank, and a clear waterfilter loop, including a filter pump for pumping waste water from thewaste water storage tank, and a high pressure filter for reducingparticulate matter in the waste water storage tank by filteringparticulate matter from the waste water to convert the waste water intothe clear water, the high pressure filter being connected from thefilter pump and having a clear water output discharging into the wastewater storage tank.